Herbert: We must do better

IU president says quest for equality still important today

IU president says quest for equality still important today

SOUTH BEND Â? When Adam Herbert was growing up black in a segregated town in Oklahoma, he never felt like a second-class citizen.

Because of his mother and his teachers, he knew he would be going to college.

Â?They gave to us the most precious gift of all, the torch of hope,Â? Herbert, president of Indiana University, told an audience of about 300 people Thursday in South Bend.

He spoke at the Marriott Hotel during the 17th annual Human Rights Awareness Day luncheon, which is hosted by the South Bend Human Rights Commission.

After high school, Herbert went on to the University of Southern California, and his career in university teaching and administration.

The world has changed enormously since the days of his youth, but one thing that hasnÂ?t changed is the empowering force of education, Herbert said. A strong work ethic is much more important than the color of oneÂ?s skin, he said.

The task of achieving equality in society is not yet done, Herbert said.

Â?Now, more than ever, we have a clear obligation to assure that our children and theirs are better prepared to thrive and not simply live,Â? he said.

Intelligence isnÂ?t enough, Herbert said. We must offer the kind of education that encourages students to examine their values and develop an ethical framework, he said.

Â?The ability to think independently and ask the right questions is as important as knowing the right answers,Â? he said.

African-Americans were motivated to pursue equality through the actions of leaders such as Martin Luther King, he said. Â?Each of us is a beneficiary of those acts,Â? he said.

In 1960, 20 percent of black Americans and 43 percent of whites graduated from high school. By 2004, graduation rates had increased to 81 percent of blacks and 86 percent of whites, he said.

In 1960, 3 percent of black Americans and 8 percent of whites earned college degrees. By 2004, that rate had risen to 18 percent of blacks and 28 percent of whites, he said.

Â?Clearly, we have made major gains,Â? he said. Â?There is still much, much more to do.Â?

The vision of equality for which King and many others worked has not yet been fully realized, he said.

That is obvious in Indiana, where more than 60 percent of all black children live below the poverty level, compared to one-third of white children, he said.

And black males ages 15 to 24 are at least three times more likely to be victims of homicide in Indiana than their white peers, he said.

Â?All of these conditions are unacceptable. We can and we must do better,Â? Herbert said.

Changing these conditions must begin with a strong emphasis on education, including early childhood education and full-day kindergarten, he said.